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Monday, January 28, 2013

The Reluctant Duke- excerpt

“He
is so malleable. Nothing like my dear husband, the real Duke.”

Colin’s
backbone stiffened at this evidence of how his sister in law really saw him.
All this time he had thought she would be happy as his wife, how wrong he had
been. He could only imagine how miserable she would have made his life if he
had married her. Being compared to his brother for every day of his life? The
thought was enough to weaken his knees.

“Malleable,
how?” asked her eager friend.

“Well,
just last week his wife wrote to him asking him to visit her in Scotland.
During the Season, can you imagine that? Intolerable.” Honoria sounded quite
disgusted at the prospect despite the fact that she had left London for a month
to join him and his new wife at their estate.

Colin
tried to recall the day Honoria was talking about, but could barely remember
that day. His butler had read him the letter whilst he had been in his cups and
he did not remember how he had replied.

“And
he chose not to go?” The other woman asked, obviously surprised.

“Of
course he wanted to go. But his
mother made it clear that his wife was just having a fit of the vapours and
that she could wait another few months.”

Colin
gasped and then quickly covered his mouth. He did remember his mother raving
something about Annabelle that night, but he rarely listened to his mother
anymore.